Game Music Freak's Blog!!!

Running XP Ys The Oath in Felghana and Ys VI on Windows 7

2011-08-28T13:43:00.022-04:00

Before I begin, I assume you are familiar with running Japanese games on your PC. I always run mine in Japanese mode instead of using Applocale, but whatever works for you!
Now, I couldn't find a guide for this anywhere for these specific games, and I know there are some others who are having the same problems I had. Well I have finally gotten both games running perfectly, and I'll tell you exactly what I did. Hopefully it will help you too!

I'm always learning new things, but I'm a person of limited technical skill when it comes to computers. So when I got a laptop with Windows 7 (64-bit) I immediately started going through my Falcom "XP" PC games collection to check their compatibility. I haven't bought any of Falcom's Windows 7 or Vista versions as of yet. Out of 12 games, the only two that didn't work at all were Ys VI and Ys - The Oath in Felghana.

Here's a screenshot of my current laptop's specs:

IS IT WINDOWS 7 SERVICE PACK 1?
Now my system didn't come with Service Pack 1, and coincidentally, I only tried using this method to get the games to work after upgrading to SP1. I don't know if that presented an issue for these two games specifically, since all my other Falcom titles worked fine without WIN7 SP1. I wanted to mention that just in case you haven't upgraded, it may be necessary. SP1 should install in your automatic updates. I'll link to Microsoft at the end of this post.

FALCOM'S SUPPORT PATCHES WERE THE KEY
Looking around for help, I always encountered the same tips:

1. Under Properties for the game, check compatibility mode, and run for compatibility with a previous version of windows.
2. Run as administrator
3. Check the game company's website for patches.

Under XP, I never had to install any support patches for Falcom's PC games. I've now found that it was necessary for the two games in question to work on Windows 7. At least in my case that was definitely part of the issue. Before I go further, I would like to mention that I have the first, or Limited Editions of both games, DVD-ROM versions. But I don't think that should be a problem, you just need to download and install the support patches directly from Falcom.

Installing the games and the English patches won't work at first. I tried it dozens of times. For some reason, and I don't know if it's just Win7, but installing the English patches didn't properly install Falcom's support patches like I thought they were. Thus it never occurred to me that it wasn't installing the support patches(I certainly never had any trouble like that on XP). I also tried installing the games and running them without any support patches at all, and all my other XP Falcom games still work normally like that under Win7.

Here's how my properties for both games look now:

Ys VI:

**FOR YS VI DIRECTX9 MAY BE REQUIRED**

YsF:

Note: The only option I chose for both games was to run as administrator, the OS compatibility was chosen automatically.

Falcom's Ys VI Support Patch

Official Falcom Ys VI Support Site: Update Version 1.1.0.9

Do a clean install of the game, then install the patch linked above. That should do it. If that doesn't work, Falcom has a couple more Ys VI support patches:

Ys VI Support Patch Version 1.2.0.2

and

Ys VI Support Patch Version 1.3.0.5

The one that worked for me was 1.1.0.9.

Now for Ys - The Oath in Felghana

Falcom's YsF Support Patch

Official Falcom YsF Support Site: Update Version 1.2.0.3

Just like for Ys VI, first do a clean install of the game, then install the patch. This is the one that worked for me. Also, in both cases, after doing this, I was able to run the English patches for both games and they finally worked normally.

Additional thoughts:
I've heard it mentioned that Windows 7 has a 32-Bit version. I don't know if that has any implications here, but Falcom's support patches are designed for Windows XP 64-bit, so there may be something to that.

About Windows 7 Service Pack 1 - I am still unsure if this has helped the games run for me. If anyone knows an answer please comment. Anyway here is a link to help upgrading to Win7 SP1 from Microsoft:

Instructions from Microsoft on how to install Windows 7 Service Pack 1

I hope this has been of help to you, I have tested the methods above including trying to run the games (unsuccessfully), installing the patch, and then successfully running them first try after the patches were installed.

I'd like to thank Red Hairdo over at the Ancient Land of Ys Forum for creating a topic about all the different versions of the Ys games. It was that topic specifically that got me motivated to "try again" and also make this post.

Later!

Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki Collective Music Files and Falcom 30th - Kiseki & Ys Best Secret

2011-08-15T17:42:00.003-04:00

Got them for excellent prices from a couple Yahoo Japan auctions! Even though Falcom has chosen to release the soundtrack for Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki - Alternative Saga separately now, I had to get the original version with the Collective Music Files set. Who knows, I'll probably get the new version from Falcom as well.

Total soundtracks now at 671.

Later!

Finally got a Secret of Evermore Soundtrack!!

2011-08-05T15:30:00.001-04:00

From my collection page:

I can't tell you how long I have waited to get my hands on it. Having bought the game when it first came out, I didn't have any way to order the CD, though I really wanted to. Of course it didn't come cheap, but it was just the right time to go for it.
(Album #669)

ANCIENT GRADE - DOUJIN ALBUM REVIEW

2011-06-10T17:39:00.010-04:00

The Ancient Grade Front Album Cover - Catalog #SFCD-0001

So I got my hands on what I consider to be the best Falcom Doujin Album in existence, and it's from Sound Factory Carolina! I had to go through a Yahoo Japan auction to get it, and it was totally worth every penny. In short, this album is a perfect Falcom rock monstrosity. Sound Factory Carolina released it in 2006!

It's been a while since I was able to actually win an auction on a doujin album at Yahoo Japan, but this was a "buy it now," and it is all Falcom so I jumped on it. Plus, as a visitor of Sound Factory Carolina's site, this is the first time I've been able to get an actual album by them.
The album contains 12 tracks and only three of them are what I would consider soft, four if you count the "Cagesong of the Ocean Suite," (track 9) but that is EPIC, and it has plenty of rocking parts. I'm going to review every track, so let's get down to it!

The Track List

ALL MUSIC ARRANGED, GUITAR AND BASS PLAYS, SYNTH PROGRAMMINGS AND ARTWORK BY TOMOT

1. Feena (From Ys)
2. To Make the End of Battle (From Ys II)
3. Battle Ground (From Ys II Eternal)
4. Ruins of Moondoria (From Ys II)
5. The Limits of Strength (From The Legend of Heroes V)
6. The Dawn of Ys (From Ys IV)
7. The Gods of the Four Winds (From The Legend of Xanadu)
8. Illburns Ruins (From Ys III/The Oath in Felghana)
9. A Cagesong of the Ocean Suite (From The Legend of Heroes V)
10.Valestein Castle (From Ys III/The Oath in Felghana)
11.Final Battle (From Ys)
12.The Morning Grow (From Ys)

1. Feena (From Ys)
Have you ever wondered what Feena might sound like with a guitar? It begins like any other version of Feena. Soft synth, and the familiar melody by Yuzo Koshiro. Then, at around 15 seconds, the guitars kick in, and you know you're in for something different. It gets a little orchestral, with the guitar coming back in at intervals. It is so sweet! It feels almost like an urban piece. He tweaked what I'd call the main chorus melody, but it fits perfectly! Very well done, and well balanced. It sets the standard for the rest of the album.

2. To Make the End of Battle (From Ys II)
It's a classic, and what Falcom arrange album would be complete without it? The piece starts with a piano and then roars in with drums and guitars all over the place, there's a bit of organ too! At about 3:05 you're treated to a little bit of acoustic guitar, but the electric guitars come right back to close out the piece. It's relentless! It is one of the best versions I've ever heard. Period.

3. Battle Ground (From Ys II Eternal)
Originally a left out, though unforgotten piece of music intended for Ys, Battle Ground finally made it's in-game appearance when Ys II Eternal first hit. This is outstanding here, it's fast, and doesn't let up with the guitars and synth, IT'S A BEAST, I love it! It's over four minutes, and there are so many new parts SFC have created for it, it's just amazing.

4. Ruins of Moondoria (From Ys II)
Opening with some drums and guitar, it doesn't sound like the Ruins of Moondoria you know at first. At around the 24 second mark, here comes a piano and then you become aware of where he's headed with it. There's a lot of different things happening here, and even a part that sounds like Metal Max's "Tank Boss" when S.S.H. did it. Then at other parts it reminds me somewhat of a marching song. It's great, and fast right where it needs to be.

5. The Limits of Strength (From The Legend of Heroes V)
I've never finished Legend of Heroes V, but I do own the OST. I don't know if this is a boss theme or not, but it always sounded like one to me. This is another fast rock piece, with ruling guitars and drums. After three minutes there's an awesome guitar solo. I'm so glad this is on the album, as it made me want to go ahead and play LoH V some more. By the way, this is track 35 on disc 1 of The Legend of Heroes V OST.

6. The Dawn of Ys (From Ys IV)
This is the only performance on the album that I don't like as much as the others. It is kind of different from what you're used to hearing. Perhaps not arrangement-wise once the guitars come in, but in tempo. I would have liked it to be faster, but the way he did it, it does have a certain charm. Don't get me wrong, it is an excellent performance, and I could see this as fitting really well with an anime version of Ys IV, or if Ys IV was remade by Falcom. In the grand scope of the album, it fits well among the other speedy rock tracks. He has done well with it. Since I'm quite used to the Dawn of Ys version of this song, that may be the reason why I'm not too taken with it yet. There's some saxophone in here that did remind me of what Ryo Yonemitsu did with the desert theme in Ys IV -The Dawn of Ys. Atsushi Fukai even turned Ys IV's Battle #58 into a fantastic, cheery, piano jazz piece. Maybe it will grow on me after a few more listens.

7. The Gods of the Four Winds (From The Legend of Xanadu)
After the somewhat toned down "Dawn of Ys," he once again brings the album back to a really rocking mode with this arrangement of one of the action scenes from The Legend of Xanadu. Heavy drums and guitars throughout, it fits the tempo of the original chiptune perfectly. If you know me, you know I'm very fond of The Legend of Xanadu, and this is just awesome. The short organ part is very cool, and there is plenty of improvising on the melody. This is track 43 on disc 2 of The Legend of Xanadu OST.

8. Illburns Ruins (From Ys III/The Oath in Felghana)
In my opinion, this is the best, the pinnacle of the album. It is by far the best version of Illburns Ruins I've ever heard, and it COMPLETELY ROCKS! You don't hear the original opening of this piece until you're well into the track, but that doesn't matter, because this is Ys purity. It's frantic dungeon running, non-stop monster slashing at it's best, and it's another masterpiece. Perfection. If you're familiar with Tomohiko Kishimoto's (JDK Band) Ys III work on Adol's Theme, if you listen closely, you may hear some of that in here.

9. A Cagesong of the Ocean Suite (From The Legend of Heroes V)
This is the suite from Disc 2 of The Legend of Heroes V OST, tracks 22-25. THIS IS INCREDIBLE. I never imagined this piece could be done as such a rock anthem, but that's what comes to my mind when I hear it. Again, perfection, and almost 7 minutes in length.

10. Valestein Castle (From Ys III/The Oath in Felghana)
The arrangement begins with a beautiful harpsichord (is that a little bit of Sorcerian I hear?) which ends with the "lucky" Treasure Chest Theme. Then it takes a cue from The Oath in Felghana and rocks hard, loud and fast as it should, in the Ys tradition. This is ruling. Did I mention that somewhere already? The organ section at around 2 minutes is glorious. I so love this! Forgive me if I go on about this album like that, it is just so refreshing to hear incredible, quality arrangements of music you've grown up listening to. It is still possible to breathe new life into Ys music after all.

11. Final Battle (From Ys)
The final battle with Dark Fact comes alive just before the album's end. While I consider the TG16 CD version as perfection when it comes to this piece, Tomot continues to demonstrate here the mastery of the Falcom style of arranging with drums, synth, and guitar all rolled into one. I think this may be the most synth heavy track on the album, and it's awesome.

12. The Morning Grow (From Ys)
The Ys I Staff Roll. A fantastic way to close out this album with soft guitars, flutes, and piano. It all fits so well together.

Well, that's it. I was completely shocked by the beauty and quality of this album, it goes to show you that "Doujin Artists" such as Sound Factory Carolina have what it takes to arrange on the same level and even better than the game companies.
I hope you enjoyed this review. I'll leave a link and some more scans below:

Ancient Grade Back Cover

Ancient Grade Inner Cover and Disc

Sound Factory Carolina

You can even download songs from this album! I give it a 10 out of 10. Great job Tomot!
See You Next Time!

All About FF Distant Worlds Atlanta!!

2011-05-10T20:36:00.013-04:00

I had such an awesome time at the FF Distant Worlds Concerts over the weekend! Lots of cool things happened. The performances were great, especially on Saturday, when Symphony Hall was packed!

Mr. Arnie Roth conducted, and Mr. Nobuo Uematsu attended as well! It was wonderful to see him again. Not only that, but I got to meet the awesome Mr. Larry Oji from Overclocked Remix on Friday. On Saturday I got to attend with a longtime friend from Ancient Land of Ys message boards. (You rule SkyeWelse! Thanks so much!)

THE PERFORMANCE - Featuring the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Georgia Tech Chamber Choir (Approx. 2 hours)

Liberi Fatali (VIII)
FF Victory Fanfare (Series)
Don't Be Afraid (VIII)
FF I-III Medley 2010
Memoro de la Stono - Distant Worlds (Featuring Beverly Blouin) (XI)
To Zanarkand (X)
J-E-N-O-V-A (VII)
Dear Friends (V)
Vamo' alla Flamenco (IX)
The Man With the Machine Gun (VIII)

SECOND HALF

Opening - Bombing Mission (VII)
Fisherman's Horizon (VIII)

Fabula Nova Crystallis (XIII)
Blinded By Light (XIII)
- The two pieces above were my first time hearing any of Mr. Masashi Hamauzu's music for FF XIII, and I must say they were incredible. I will get a next gen system besides a Wii soon so I can play it!

Navigator's Glory - The Theme of Limsa Lominsa (XIV)
At a previous Distant Worlds Concert, I heard some of Mr. Uematsu's FF XIV work, and this piece was new to me. I loved it!

Chocobo Medley 2010 - Now features an intro from FF XIV, and it was wonderful, the other half of it was Swing de Chocobo from FF X!

Opera "Maria and Draco" (VI)
Featured Beverly Blouin, Bradley Howard, and Michael Arens. I've seen this performed a few times now, and while I like Susan Calloway over Beverly Blouin, this had to be one of the best performances I've ever heard of the legendary scene from FF VI. Bradley Howard even sounded like the SNES synth!

Terra's Theme (VI) - Final Piece
Encore - One Winged Angel (VII) - Mr. Uematsu joined in with the Choir on this one! I could even see him dancing along with the music!

I was surprised by the number of pieces from FF VIII, and the absence of favorites like "Aeris" and FF IV's "Theme of Love." I thought the performance was fantastic on both nights! Thank you Distant Worlds and Mr. Uematsu for traveling so far south!

Lot's of cool Merchandise was on sale, so I got FF XIV Battle Tracks, Distant Worlds II, and the Distant Worlds "Returning Home" CD/DVD set:

My Chrono Trigger OST that I've had for over 15 years now, which was autographed by Mr. Mitsuda at Play! now features Mr. Uematsu's signature as well!

I got the Earthbound Papas CD autographed! (I'm sending it to a friend)

Mr. Uematsu was very pleased to see that I had bought the album, and he thanked me for purchasing it. He and his assistant also inquired as to where I got it.

I knew Larry Oji from Overclocked Remix was going to be there, and it was so great to meet him! He is one of the coolest guys I've ever met. We talked after the concert on Friday and during the meeting/autograph session.

My seventh time meeting Mr. Nobuo Uematsu!

Thanks for reading, maybe I'll be in Chicago next month!

-GMF

At Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Atlanta Tonight and Tomorrow!

2011-05-06T11:27:00.001-04:00

See you there! They've been posting a lot of songs that will be played over at Twitter, so it looks like it's gonna be a great concert! I'll be at both shows, Friday and Saturday. It will be nice to see Mr. Uematsu again!

SPECIAL AUCTION TO HELP JAPAN!

2011-04-17T23:13:00.008-04:00

Hello friends! I'm auctioning my Autographed Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Soundtrack CD for a charity to help Japan! This is part of my commitment to do all I can to help! Spread the word if you can! Below is a "Link to the Auction."

Click!

I've set the auction at ten days to give time for as many people as possible to see it! See you again soon!

Attending Distant Worlds Atlanta in May!

2011-03-31T09:11:00.003-04:00

Thrilled that they are finally coming to my home town in Atlanta! It's really cool that Mr. Nobuo Uematsu has taken the time out to travel that far south. I believe it will be his first public appearance in Atlanta! Awesomeness!

More Information Here!

See you there!

The Best of JDK Band #3

2011-03-24T09:37:00.002-04:00

The Best of JDK Band #3 features Go Fight! It's also my first Star Trader Music video.
I used the Star Trader X68000 version, which I got from Project Egg.

New Best of JDK Band Playlist on Youtube!

2011-03-21T21:52:00.005-04:00

Falcom's JDK Band are legends, and I'm making a new playlist of their best arrangements through the years. It will have the original and current Band lineup.
Here are the first two videos!

Legend of the Wind - From The Legend of Xanadu

A medley of Stealing the Will to Fight, and Illberns Ruins from Ys III/The Oath in Felghana

*The Xenogears Orchestral Album giveaway contest I mentioned on the collection page will be delayed for a little while due to the tragedy in japan. Right now I'm just trying to do what I can to help them.

ZREO Twilight Symphony Choir Contribution

2011-03-21T21:43:00.007-04:00

A small contribution to Zelda Reorchestrated was made to help them secure a live choir for their upcoming Twilight Symphony album. Hope it will be of some help, you guys are awesome!

Sanctuary Crew is taking donations up to 4/16 for Japan relief!

2011-03-21T21:33:00.003-04:00

The crew did an amazing job with their marathon stream this weekend, and raised over 700 hundred dollars so far! Let's help them reach their goal! All the links are below:

Article on the Sanctuary Crew Site!

Click Here!

100% of the money earned from the marathon will be given to the IRC- the International Rescue Committee.

The Sanctuary Crew campaign website!

Click!

A lot of awesome games were featured over the weekend.

Check their Justin.TV site!

Click!!

Keep up with the crew here as well.

The Sanctuary Crew Presents FIGHT FOR JAPAN!

2011-03-18T10:42:00.003-04:00

The Sanctuary Crew is doing a gaming Marathon to help Japan!

Article on the Sanctuary Crew Site!

Click Here!

100% of the money earned from the marathon will be given to the IRC- the International Rescue Committee.

The Sanctuary Crew also has a campaign website up!

Click!

Japan is hurting, spread the word and join the fight! Let's do what we can to support the people of Japan as they cope with this crisis.

Check their Justin.TV site below, you will be able to watch live:

Click!!

The marathon will be from 3/18 through 3/20.

Collection Updates!

2011-03-03T18:26:00.003-05:00

I've been updating the collection page, will be back soon over here!

Click!

And I'll get a review up for Ys Seven finally.

Sorcerian Perfect Collections at Egg Music

2010-10-15T12:55:00.003-04:00

It's a chance to obtain all three rare (and awesome) Sorcerian Perfect Collections without having to track down the discs yourself, like I had to years ago. Plus, Egg Music is an official distributor, not a pirate. There are six discs in all, and each disc is 1575 yen (around $19.41 USD) to download at Egg Music. You can listen to samples or purchase individual tracks as well. You'll have to create an account, but after that you'll be able to buy all the mp3s you want through Paypal.

A link to the Egg Music Catalog:

Egg Music Catalog

How to buy mp3s from Egg Music for English speaking game music fans:

Click!

I've received word that the Ys Seven contest winner has received the game. Hope you enjoy it!

Well, anyway, I'm going to be formatting my PC soon, so I haven't been able to produce any more finished pages for the web comic, make any music videos, or upload any more episodes of "In the Beginning," but I'll be back to full functionality soon!

I have finished my first playthrough of Ys Seven in English and it was hands down the best in the series I think. Now I'm really lamenting that it's over. It feels like there are no games out there worth playing. Ys Seven is just plain epic. Trust me, Falcom has reached new ground with it. If you haven't played it yet I HIGHLY recommend playing it, if you're a PSP gamer. Can it ever be topped? I look forward to posting my "Ys Seven Fan's Review" once everything is back to normal again.

Later!

-GMF

contest over! There is a winner!

2010-10-01T13:42:00.000-04:00

Thanks! I'll contact the winner now!

Ys Seven Limited Editon Giveaway Contest on Friday!!

2010-09-27T02:23:00.004-04:00

Ok, so I got two copies of the Ys Seven Premium Edition, and have been waiting to give one of them away. Friday, October 1st will be the day.
I will not be doing it via Twitter this time.

All you have to do is send an e-mail titled "Ys 7 contest", or "Ys Seven Contest" to: (address to be announced) when I post "Ys Seven contest is open" on Friday. The first e-mail I receive will be the winner! Profanity in the e-mail is not allowed, and any such messages will not be eligible as a valid entry.

This contest is open to everyone, and I will ship worldwide. This contest is for one premium edition English Ys Seven game for the PSP system. There will be only one winner. I wish I could do more but I'm funding this contest myself.
The last Ys giveaway I did was very successful, and the contest ended quickly. Be ready on Friday!

DARKNESS RISING CONTINUES!

2010-08-10T07:27:00.002-04:00

Page 2 of chapter 1 is up now at the site! Click the link below!
Batman & Megaman: Darkness Rising

The story continues in one week, and in the next update I'll list the rules for the Ys Seven Limited Edition giveaway. Later!

FALCOM UNVEILS LEGEND OF HEROES VII TRAILER

2010-07-30T11:24:00.005-04:00

The Legend of Heroes: Zero no Kiseki

If you played The Legend of Heroes VI, any of the three chapters, it looks like more of the same RPG greatness. Perhaps somewhere down the line it will get an English release now that X-Seed and Falcom have a partnership going. I certainly hope so, but I'll probably end up buying it in Japanese anyway.

Also of note: The Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki fighting game is finally out in Japan (and anywhere else, I'd guess, if you ordered from Falcom). I didn't order it, but I'd love to soon, assuming Falcom can get more available. I know at one point they even sold out of the limited edition before the game was even released. I bet it has a cool story, but at the same time when the game was first announced I was hoping for a full RPG. It's certainly more than just a fighter, and it has a lot of cool Falcom music re-arranges.

Page 2 of the web comic will be up very soon. I am sorry I didn't get it up there yet, but things will be on schedule once it's posted. Here are the pencils for page 2:

Later!

Is Gamemusic.com gone?

2010-07-26T02:06:00.002-04:00

Currently, all attempts to access gamemusic.com just lead to another site. I know they had mostly everything on clearance, but there was still a lot of inventory. I kept checking back there regularly and never saw any "closing down" messages. I hope they are not gone for good.

My Favorite Game Music #55 - A Violent Encounter ~ Battle With the Colos...

2010-07-09T02:44:00.001-04:00

My first Shadow of the Colossus Music Video!

Wonderful music by Kow Otani!

Final Fantasy III - Eternal Wind (Arranged by Zuigu)

2010-07-01T09:39:00.000-04:00

Eternal Wind from Final Fantasy III arranged by Zuigu. There's just something about this version in particular that I really love. I've been listening to it a lot lately.

Ys - Fountain of Love (Time For Us) Arranged by NYA

2010-07-01T09:35:00.001-04:00

Great Arrangement of Fountain of Love!

Webcomic Official SIte Open!!!

2010-06-28T03:14:00.004-04:00

I just opened up a new blogger site for the webcomic! Here it is:

Batman & Megaman: Darkness Rising

I'll put alink in the links section soon as well. Later!

THERE WILL BE AN YS SEVEN GIVEAWAY!!

2010-06-25T04:37:00.005-04:00

By now most of you Falcom fans out there have heard Ys Seven is coming to the PSP in English, courtesy of the fine folks at XSEED Games. So to celebrate I will be giving away one copy of the limited edition set they have produced. It includes a music CD, and even a cloth map! The game is scheduled to be released in late Summer, so I've prepared by ordering two copies of the Limited Edition. One of them will go to the winner.

Assuming all goes well and they arrive here safely, this will be another contest, just like when Ys Chronicles was released! I may do something different this time, so please check back for details, I am considering offering a second place prize as well.

Two New Music Videos...

2010-06-13T11:10:00.002-04:00

Awesome song from Megaman X8 - "Troia Base~Forwarding":

"Peaceful Enclosure" From The Legend of Xanadu II (two versions):

Collection Page Updated!

2010-06-10T12:08:00.004-04:00

I updated the collection page with new photos of the latest soundtracks!

Game Music Freak's Collection

I'm Preparing a new site for the webcomic.

Later!

My Favorite Game Music #51 - The Warship Hold (Bonk's Revenge)

2010-06-02T22:09:00.001-04:00

IN THE BEGINNING EPISODE 17 - THE FALL OF JERICHO

2010-06-02T20:37:00.003-04:00

As promised, Here is Episode 17 of In the Beginning!
Part 1

Part 2

IN THE BEGINNING ON YOUTUBE!!

2010-06-01T04:44:00.007-04:00

Hey, I couldn't help myself, so I started converting my "In the Beginning" VHS library to digital formats, and a youtube channel was born out of it. Right now I have the first 16 episodes up. So far it's been great! Here is an amazing clip from episode 16 featuring the last moments of the life of Moses:

The fingerprint of Osamu Tezuka is all over this series. I plan to put up Episode 17 - "The Fall of Jericho" tomorrow 6/2/10.

GMF In the Beginning

Enjoy it while it lasts!

- Keith

DARKNESS RISING CHAPTER 1

2010-06-01T03:57:00.007-04:00

The chapter 1 title card is revealed!

I am sorry there were no updates to this page for so long. Last Fall my mother had major surgery and a lot of hard work was required on the part of my family and myself to help her get through it. She's doing ok now, but things were rocky at first. Unfortunately soon after that, tragically, on February 4th, 2010 my father passed away.

My dad was a special guy, and losing him was a tremendous blow to my family. I've never known anyone else who worked so hard to support his family. He spent the last years of his life suffering severe illness, and at least he is now at peace, God Bless him always.

Online Obituary

It took a while for me to get back to the drawing board with things, quite literally. Now that I am back though I hope you will enjoy this fan webcomic featuring Batman and Megaman. This story has been in my head for so long, I just really wanted to see it happen. I welcome your comments and criticisms, and hope you will collect it and spread the word! The one thing I can promise from the story is that there will be lots of action and fanservice. The title "Darkness Rising" came about because it just fits.

That's all for now, I will leave you with a photo of me with Mr. Nobuo Uematsu from 12/12/09:

A Cover Has Appeared!!

2010-05-31T14:25:00.003-04:00

Big update later this week, in the meantime, consider this the official start of my webcomic!

See you soon!

Ys Online Solo Gameplay Movie 2

2009-08-28T13:39:00.003-04:00

I recently put up another Ys Online video. Ys Seven is just around the corner, and it's gonna be a blast to play!
I've also started making Megaman X music and gameplay videos featuring Kissing the Mirror's Megaman X Rock albums. It will be a little while before I complete all of them, but I want them all to be available on Youtube at the same time.

In the next post the Batman/Megaman comic will begin!

Ys Online

2009-08-09T13:35:00.009-04:00

*NEW* Character Emotions video by MP83!

I've never played a MMORPG before, and I still remember when I first saw the trailer for Ys Online. I was disappointed. However, now that I'm playing it, it's actually quite fun! I can definitely see why gamers spend a lot of time playing these games. One of the coolest features in Ys Online is getting to hear all the new arrangements of classic Ys music while you play. If you like MMORPGs I recommend giving Ys Online a shot. It's not only free to play, but the soundtrack is free to download too!

Ys Online Official site

Later!

Attending Distant Worlds Concert on 12/12!

2009-08-01T01:25:00.003-04:00

I've been acquiring a lot of new soundtracks, so most of the updates were to my collection page. The crew over at Final Fantasy Distant Worlds have announced a huge concert for 12/12/2009, so I immediately bought a ticket for that one. I can't wait.

Something exciting I have planned for August is premiering my Batman and Megaman Comic story, which will be a big part of this blog. The story will begin in a couple of weeks! Check out the link at the Distant Worlds below to read about the awesome concert they have planned for 12/12. See you next time!

Final Fantasy Distant Worlds
Congratulations to the Ys I & II Chronicles winner!

Random Giveaway Contest #1 - Ys I & II Chronicles!!

2009-07-29T13:49:00.005-04:00

I have two copies of Ys I & II Chronicles for PSP. Both were bought directly from Falcom. Both have the pre-order bonus CDs, and one will be given away tomorrow on July 30th, 2009. I gave a "heads up" to this a couple of days ago on Twitter.

If you follow me on Twitter, all you have to do tomorrow is look for the update that says "the Ys I & II Chronicles contest is open, e-mail now!" (Hint, it will probably be in the afternoon, and I'm in the Eastern time zone in the US).

When the contest update appears, just send a message to my e-mail. (comicsrule@hotmail.com) it can be one word, such as "hello", "did I win?", anything except profanity please. Profanity will be disqualified, as well as anything with a spam link. The first e-mail I get regarding the contest wins Ys I & II Chronicles for the PSP.

Here is my Twitter:

Gamemusicfreak's Twitter Good Luck! I'll e-mail the winner immediately when the contest is over, and announce it on Twitter.

On Deviant Art!

2009-05-13T03:34:00.005-04:00

I closed down the old art page in favor of creating a new one over at Deviantart. If you would like to visit and see what I've been up to over there, please feel free to do so!

Click!

Or if you would like to check my Twitter profile, I hang out there quite a bit too:

Gamemusicfreak's Twitter

Here's an awesome track from Sonic for the Sega Master System, I love it!

I'm considering attending the FF Distant Worlds Concert in Seattle this July. I'll keep you updated on whether or not I'll be there.

Catch you later!

Capcom partners with Sumthing Distribution!

2009-05-11T09:03:00.004-04:00

The Game Music market in the US just got another shot at staying afloat thanks to Sumthing Distribution. Known primarily for releasing soundtracks for XBox games, Street Fighter IV is among the new titles slated to get a soundtrack release here in the US. That makes it one of the first multi platform game soundtracks to come from Sumthing Else, thanks to this partnership. I hope Capcom is in this for good, it would be nice to see some Megaman OSTs released over here! No release dates have been announced yet, but the new Bionic Commando OST is also up for release through this partnership.

More on this exciting deal here:

CLICK!

I also updated the collection list with all the latest soundtracks I acquired. See you again soon!

PS

The Ys Seven page was updated again!!

Ys Seven Official Site Updated!

2009-04-24T04:39:00.004-04:00

New additions include wallpapers for PSP and PC, and some limited character information.

Click!

Check out the new Ys 1-7 History CD they are creating!

What Ys IV Tracks will be on it? I wonder if they'll be from the Perfect Collections.
More later!

PS

The Ys I & II Chronicles site has been updated too! A new Best of Ys I & II CD is planned as well!

Ys I & II Chronicles

Never heard Symphony Ys?
You may like this video I made with To Make the End of Battle from Ys II, using footage from the TG 16 classic version, with an orchestra arrangement:

Ys Seven Official site begins!

2009-04-10T13:34:00.004-04:00

Ys Seven will be first released on the PSP this September, and Falcom unveiled the official site for it today. There's no content up yet, but there is a link to the site for their retooled PSP port of Ys I & II Complete, called Ys I & II Chronicles.
You can expect them to have music demos available soon. It's already been confirmed that Ys Seven will feature the Five Dragons of Altago story that fans have been anticipating. I'm eagerly awaiting to play this!

You can check out the site here!

See you again soon!

For those attending the Distant Worlds Meet and Greet with Nobuo Uematsu...

2009-04-07T09:58:00.002-04:00

Hey! If you're attending a meet and greet at one of Mr. Uematsu's upcoming scheduled concert appearances, I have some tips:

1. Bring a camera!
2. Bring stuff to get autographed!

The meet and greet is one of the most fun things! Usually, though the line is long, everyone is given a good opportunity (at least 3 minutes) to meet Mr. Uematsu and conductor Arnie Roth. I usually spend about 5 minutes, but I'm always mindful of others in line.

First, the meet and greet is always after the show, so get there early! The theater staffs in my experience are very generous and will allow each person a few minutes to speak to Nobuo if they wish. Then again, if you're the last person in line, you may get extra time!

What you do with your meet time is up to you. They won't give you an unlimited amount of time, so be prepared. Many people get a photo, get autographs or I've seen some girls sing a FF song, or give Nobuo a kiss on the cheek!

If you bring a lot of CDs to get signed, have the discs opened in a stack, or the liner notes stacked, ready to give to Nobuo. I usually use this time, when he is signing, to thank him, or make jokes, or whatever.

I always think, "this may not ever happen again, so I better make use of it!"

I have been fortunate to meet Mr. Uematsu on five different occasions, so I've garnered a little experience in that time.
If the theater staff is rushing you, my advice is to ignore them. They may not understand that Mr. Uematsu's appearance outside of Japan is rare. He is a patient and very kind person, and is looking forward to meeting his international fans. Remember you paid a lot for a chance to meet him, so get your money's worth!

I invite you to take a look in my archives of the first US Distant Worlds show last year.

click!

see you later!

Update 4-7-09

2009-04-07T09:23:00.002-04:00

Hey all! I have been drowned in working two jobs for the last several months, so Updating this page became increasingly difficult. It seemed every time I was set to go with somehthing new, something else came up! After this week I'll be back to regular posting (it seems I lost what little readers I had!) *laughs*

The Play! CD giveaway I mentioned in my last post is going to happen, I just ask for your patience while I get back on track. *Hint* It will probably be in a Youtube video of some sort. See you soon!

Play! CD/DVD releasing on January 9th!

2009-01-03T08:43:00.004-05:00

This is too awesome, and it's finally here! Play! A Video Game Symphony has just announced that their first CD/DVD will begin shipping on 1-9-09. I have a long history with this concert, and this news is just what I needed! You can order the CD/DVD set from the Play! site now as well! *I will buy extra copies for a random giveaway event, so stay tuned!*

Click!

This month marks the third anniversary of this blog, and it has been a lot of fun. Thanks to those of you who have stopped by, I appreciate it!

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009/ Ys V Video Playthrough in progress...

2009-01-01T11:23:00.003-05:00

Happy new year! I'm looking forward to making it one of the best. Some Christmas goodies I got were: Valkyrie Profile 2, Chrono Trigger DS, Dragon Quest IV DS, and Capcom Classics Collection & Gitaroo Man for the PSP. Playing Chrono Trigger again brought back some awesome memories from the 90's, it's still a blast!

If you've never played Ys V, I've been working on a video playthrough of it for youtube. Please check it out!

Ys VII is lurking somewhere on the horizon, and I truly hope it comes out sometime in '09. Below is a link to the cool interview Music 4 Games did with HItoshi Sakimoto.

Music 4 Games Interview with Hitoshi Sakimoto

2009-01-01T11:15:00.003-05:00

Music 4 Games recently conducted an interview with Mr. Sakimoto, one of everyone's favorite composers. It can be found

Right Here!

More soon!

New Boss Rush Album at 16 Dimensional Records!

2008-12-10T12:18:00.002-05:00

I have to mention them again! Anytime I need something new to listen to, I check out the 16 Dimensional Records Site. It's a site dedicated to preserving the art of chiptune and electronic music composition, and it's amazing! The site contains imaginary soundtracks and music from homebrew games, original music and it's all geared toward the chip music lover. All the talented individuals there have made their music available for free as well. I encourage all game music fans to head over there and check out the music, these guys need more exposure. The latest album is called ExHale~Boss Rush, and it's a collaborative effort by Takahiro Kato and Gaii. It's a fantastic combination old chiptunes and all out electronic weirdness! Here is your ticket to old style game music greatness!

16 Dimensional Records

Now, I've been working a lot, and I'm sorry for the long absence but...

It's great to be back! I'm happy it's December, the Winter season is my favorite time of year. Lots of cool things are going on in the Game Music world. Did you see all those X Box Soundtracks getting legitimate releases in retail stores? The packaging might need a little more work, but when I walked into a Fry's Electronics store and saw a real Blue Dragon English OST, I just couldn't believe it. Sure, the Music 4 Games newsletter mentioned that release long ago, but there was just something about seeing it there with my own eyes. The price was only $13.99. No added importing fees, and no extra charges for secure shipping. There is great potential there, I hope they keep it up! Thanks to Sumthing Else Music Works for making it happen, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they continue on. Who knows, we could get more older or previously unreleased soundtracks out of this.

You can check out what they have available here:

Sumthing Distribution

I have lots more to chat about, but I'll leave that for tomorrow.

BEST OF YS MUSIC CONTINUES...

2008-10-08T18:47:00.000-04:00

Hello all! I continued my Best of Ys music playlist on Youtube. It's up to part 9 right now, with "To Make the End of Battle" from Ys II:

When you haven't heard it in a while...

2008-09-28T13:49:00.002-04:00

I started listening to the Final Fantasy X Soundtrack again, after literally years without doing so. I'm a big fan of FF X, and when I first got the soundtrack and finished the game, I listened to the music constantly! That kind of wore it out for me, but one thing I do when I don't have anything new to listen to, is check out something older I haven't heard in a while.

Wow! I had forgotten how much I loved this music, and now I regret not taking it to the Distant Worlds concert with me in March to get the OST autographed! Now it seems like it's brand new again, and wonderful memories have come flooding back into my mind.

Once piece in particular I would like to give a special mention to is "Illusion". I listened to it so much a few years ago, it literally ended up becoming sort of a theme for me when I would take a walk somewhere. Then I forgot about it. Most every RPG has a Wintery theme, but this one really struck a chord with me, even more than "Buried in the Snow" from FF VII. I got chills upon hearing it again.

I remember cool, foggy mornings filled with light drizzle and mist, wet roads, and dodging new puddles created by the rain. I find it hard to believe that I could have forgotten such a wonderful piece of music that I had really gotten attached to!

Now it's fresh in my mind again, and Winter is coming up just around the corner, and I look forward to attaching new memories around this wonderful music.

Sorcerian Megadrive Album out soon!

2008-09-26T12:09:00.003-04:00

Today it is very rare for music from a an old game to get a new release like this, and this is one album to look out for! The Sorcerian Megadrive album is available for pre-order at Play-Asia right now! Due out on October 10/29/2008 (10/31 at Play-Asia), it's sure to be one of the best soundtrack releases this year! If you have ever played any version of Sorcerian, you know it has awesome music.

Containing two discs with 43 tracks, it's truly a can't miss album for Falcom fans. Beware, the price of $39.90 USD is a little steep at Play-Asia, but since Falcom is not releasing this album, it may not be available at CocoeBiz.

If you would like to know more about Sorcerian, I recommend checking out the hardcore gaming articles on it:

Hardcore Gaming: Sorcerian

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia news:

In Castlevania news, the Order of Ecclesia soundtrack will be sold from Cocoebiz in a special bundle with the DS game (in Japanese). They are selling it from the Konami Style shop. Quantities will be limited, and the pre-order has not opened as of yet. I'm expecting the price to be in the $40-$50 range, maybe even higher. I'll update again when it's available to order, so for now the release date is October 23rd.

I don't know if this is the same type of promotion Konami did for the Contra DS soundtrack, where the OST was only available with the game bundle. That seems unlikely since this is a Castlevania game, but you never know.

Moore soon!

Thanks for 11,000 HIts!!

2008-09-20T17:46:00.000-04:00

Here's my "Scooby-Doo meets Adol Christin" piece as a thank you for visiting my page! It has never been seen outside a couple forums, but it's now on my art gallery page.
Is that really a 1970's Adol? It couldn't happen any other way :)
Thanks again, I'm waiting for my Megaman 9 soundtrack to arrive and I'll have my review of it up when it gets here.

Profile: Mercer Friendly

2008-09-16T01:59:00.004-04:00

Mercer Friendly is a NYC based duo who were commissioned to do music and sound design for the Wii game, "Groovin' Blocks".

Music from the game is available for purchase!

Let me start right off and say the soundtrack for this game is really awesome! Entitled Jetpak: Music For Groovin' Blocks, it's outstanding and breathes new life into the "old school chip-tune" style of game music that we don't get to hear too much in video games anymore. Think, "Splash Lake with a lot more depth," and you'll know what I'm talking about. The Jetpak album, containing 6 wonderful electronically charged songs, is available to purchase from the Mercer Friendly website and is also available from Amazon.com.

I have been allowed to share the official press release from Mercer Friendly:

September 13th, 2008 (NY, NY) -- Mercer Friendly is releasing their debut album featuring music from Groovin' Blocks. "Groovin' Blocks, is a music-based game like no other. It adds innovative musical gameplay to an addictive action/puzzle game. The game features 27 different stages for everyone, from casual to hardcore. It also includes 15 levels of unlockable bonuses, cooperative play and a head-to-head mode."

The album, JETPAK, drops today on http://mercerfriendly.com and Sept. 15th via Amazon.com.

For more on Mercer Friendly, please visit:

Mercerfriendly.com

and
Mercer Friendly's Myspace

Congratualtions on your great debut album, Mercer Friendly, and best of luck for the future!

P.S. The album really is great, drop by and get it, you won't regret it!

New Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Concert Dates Announced!

2008-09-04T20:07:00.004-04:00

Two more shows have been announced in the Final Fantasy Distant Worlds concert tour!

1. October 8th, 2008 -

Denver, Colorado at 7:30pm in the Boettcher Concert Hall
For tickets, call (303) 623-7876 and on sale online September 8, 2008. *NOTE: THE OFFICIAL SITE DOES NOT LIST MR. UEMATSU AS A GUEST FOR THIS SHOW* Conducting again will be Mr. Arnie Roth.

2. April 14th, 2009 -

Grand Rapids, Michigan at 7:30pm in the DeVos Performance Hall
For tickets, call (616) 454-9451, Ext. 4. They have been on sale now online since September 3, 2008.

*MR. UEMATSU IS SCHEDULED TO APPEAR IN GRAND RAPIDS, WITH A MEET SESSION AFTER THE CONCERT.*
If you would like to meet Mr. Uematsu, this is your chance. Take it from me, paying the extra price for the ticket is so worth it, you won't regret it!

More information at the Distant Worlds site:

Official Distant Worlds Site

See you next time!

Drawing Heavy Metal Megaman

2008-08-19T19:28:00.000-04:00

I needed an excuse to make a video featuring more of Dangerous Mezashi Cat's awesome Megalomania Megaman rock CD, so I threw this together. The armor was mostly improvised in the video, but I had some idea of the look I was going for prior to drawing it. Hope you enjoy the video!

Megaman 9 Soundtrack/ Arrange Album Release Dates

2008-08-17T03:06:00.004-04:00

According to CD Japan, the Megaman 9 soundtrack will be released on 9/12, and a Megaman 9 arrange album the following month, on 10/10. I was hoping they would immediately release the music on CD, instead of having to wait a long time like the original MM 1-6 NES music. I expect pre-orders to begin at CocoeBiz soon too, but for now I'll post the CD Japan link. Cool!

Pre-order link for Megaman 9 OST at CD Japan

More soon, but in the meantime here's some new art:

Megaman and Superman team up!

RIZ-ZOAWD Looks Promising...

2008-08-09T20:10:00.003-04:00

It looks like a fantastic game, doesn't it? Many sites have screen shots, but only a few name the composers for this game, and I wanted to spread the word. It's Hitoshi Sakimoto and Michiko Naruke! I went to the official site and listened to the music there, and got really excited. I hope it comes out in English. There are trailers on youtube, but the official site is really neat. I am looking forward to seeing more!

Visit the Official RIZ-ZOAWD site!

Legend of Xanadu playthrough video Progress:

I've been working on the Legend of Xanadu Video Playthrough series for my youtube channel, and will post parts 23 & 24 soon. As I'm playing through, I am enhancing the Legend of Xanadu help page with all new hints, chronological orders of events and sample videos to help with some of the difficult puzzles in the game. When complete, the game will be much easier for those who would like to play it, but don't know Japanese.

*If you had tickets for the August 23rd Play! concert that was canceled, and your tickets were being held for will call:

I called the box office regarding my refund on August 8th, and noticed no action was taken yet as of today. So I called again today and was informed that they will have all refunds processed within five days. I hope that information will be useful to you.

THANKS FOR 10,000 HITS!!

Thanks to those who visit my page! I will post the traditional drawing soon. I just have to finish it... If you look at the site counter at the bottom of this page, you'll see I changed the Megaman up with a new drawing which was just completed today. In the links section I added links to the CocoeBiz Youtube Channel as well as my own.

See you next time!

Play! concert scheduled for August 23rd in San Francisco canceled

2008-08-02T19:50:00.003-04:00

I was planning on attending this show, and even bought a ticket, however I checked the Play! site yesterday and noticed the August 23rd concert date was missing from their upcoming shows list. I figured it might have been re-scheduled or canceled, then I got an e-mail from the box office:

"Dear Patron,

Thank you for your recent ticket purchase for PLAY! A VIDEO GAME SYMPHONY. Unfortunately this event has been canceled. The presenters of this event have promised to reschedule for a date most likely in 2009.

Please return your tickets for a refund to the address below.

City Box Office
180 Redwood Street, Suite 100
San Francisco, CA 94102

Attn: Refunds

If your tickets are being held for will call you will be automatically refunded and need to take no action.

Please keep an eye out for the rescheduled date. We are sorry for the news of the cancellation.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions regarding this email."

City Box Office

(415) 392-4400

Lauren A. McQuade
General Manager
CITY BOX OFFICE
(415)392-4400

Believe me, as a veteran of game music concerts, this means when the show does happen it will be incredible! If I get any updates I'll let you know.

More Legend of Xanadu Gameplay

2008-07-27T11:04:00.000-04:00

This is my favorite scene from area 1. You have to rescue some villagers inside this cave. The music is awesome, especially if you like old PC Engine PSG music.

Cocoebiz youtube channel!

2008-07-17T12:02:00.000-04:00

Fantastic news! Cocoebiz has just begun a youtube channel! Here is the link:

Cocoebiz youtube channel

NiGHTS Perfect Album back in stock at Cocoebiz!

2008-07-17T11:56:00.000-04:00

Great to see they restocked it, you can click the link below to take you to it:

NiGHTS Perfect Album at Cocoebiz

Current Events

2008-07-16T17:25:00.000-04:00

I just moved to a new apartment, ran my fifth Peachtree Road Race on July 4th (will have pictures soon) and completed Ys DS! Now it looks like the Play! Symphony tour is really starting to gain steam again. I hope it never ends.

I'm continuing to develop the Cap'n Crunch comic, and hopefully I can launch it very soon. It's going to be a blast!

Here's a new Wolverine vs. Hulk drawing. You can click to enlarge it.

Legend of Xanadu video playthrough begins...

2008-07-16T17:16:00.001-04:00

I searched for a way to record the first Legend of Xanadu game for a while after it didn't seem to work with FRAPS. The funny thing is, Legend of Xanadu II works just fine with FRAPS. Anyway, hypercam 2 works great for LoX 1, so now I can share the awesomeness of that game as well! Above is the opening menu screen from this often overlooked Falcom masterpiece.

The opening movie is now available to watch:
Part 1

Part 2

NiGHTS PERFECT ALBUM PROFILED

2008-06-12T08:08:00.004-04:00

A BIG Thank You to Cocoebiz for helping me get a NiGHTS Perfect Album. That's the last time I wait even just a little to get a soundtrack release like this. Ebay seller champ_des_pins has them for sale also, so if someone else out there is looking for one, check there, I have a link at the bottom. It's unfortunate this album had such a low print run. I don't see why someone else hasn't picked up the publishing rights from Wave Master.

I can finally attest that this is the NiGHTS soundtrack release that everyone has wanted, and it should have been made long ago.

As an owner of the original NiGHTS one disc soundtrack (see photo below) I already knew there were plenty of missing tracks, but what I didn't expect to see for the Perfect Album were greatly extended tracks. I'm not talking about just longer track times, but most of the BGM for the stages have MUCH MORE extra music, and further elaborate on the loveable themes we're all familiar with.

The Orginal NiGHTS Soundtrack contianed only 24 tracks

The extended background music is presented on the NiGHTS Perfect Album as "Complete Versions". Whether or not these were originally intended to be in the game is something I am unsure of, but adding them here was an excellent choice, and I'm certainly glad they were included!

The NiGHTS into Dreams Perfect Album

The Perfect Album contains two discs covering the original NiGHTS into Dreams soundtrack, with a third disc covering the music for Christmas NiGHTS, the special Christmas edition of the game. All the missing tracks are finally present here, as far as I can tell, and if you're a fan of NiGHTS like me, you won't be disappointed with this edition of the beautiful soundtrack. I give this album a perfect 10, it is everything I hoped for and more.

NiGHTS into Dreams

Composers
Tomoko Sasaki, Naofumi Hataya, Fumie Kumatani, Tatsuya Kozaki

Arrangers
Hayato Matsuo, Tomoko Sasaki, Naofumi Hataya, Fumie Kumatani

Performers
Curtis King, Jr., Cameron Earl Strother, Jasmine Allen , Marlon D. Sanders, Gabriel Morris, Issa Clemon

Disc One

01 Dreams Dreams
02 Sonic Team 1996
03 Fragmented Nights
04 Dreaming Youngsters : Claris Ver.
05 Gate of Your Dream
06 Introduced Dream
07 Paternal Horn : Complete Ver.
08 Acrobat Time
09 The Dragon Gave a Loud Scream
10 After The Dream
11 Dreaming Youngsters : Elliot Ver.
12 The Amazing Water : Complete Ver.
13 Time Up
14 Pia Over
15 She Had Long Ears
16 Mare Over
17 Gloom of The N.H.C. : Complete Ver.
18 Deep It Lies 2:05
19 Message From Nightopia
20 Take The Snow Train : Complete Ver.
21 E-LE-KI Sparkle
22 Dreams Dreams : In Silent Memory

Disc 2

01 NiGHTS
02 Suburban Museum : Complete Ver.
03 The Mantle
04 Under Construction : Complete Ver.
05 NiGHTS and Reala
06 NiGHTS and Reala : Theme of a Tragedic Revenge
07 Growing Wings
08 D'Force Master
09 Peaceful Moment
10 On to The Audition
11 Score The Goal!
12 NiGHTS, Forever in Our Heart
13 Sowing Seeds
14 Dreams Dreams : Kids Ver.
15 Fragmented Nights : Epilogue Ver.
BONUS TRACKS
16 Know Thyself
17 Dreams Dreams (Instrumental)

Disc 3 (Christmas NiGHTS)

01 Missing Star
02 Welcome to Christmas NiGHTS
03 Introduced Dream
04 Dream Bells
05 The Dragon Gave a Loud Scream : In Holy Night
06 Twinkle Star
07 Dreams Dreams : A-Cappella Ver.
08 Winter Sleep 0:57
09 Jack Frost's Chime : Complete Ver.
10 New Year's "9TH"
11 Rolling Eggman
12 Dreams Dreams : Sweet Mix in Holy Night
BONUS TRACK
13 Dreams Dreams : Nightopian Ver.

Champ_des_pins ebay Auction

The Legend of Xanadu Help Page updated!

2008-06-04T21:57:00.003-04:00

Whew! I went through a time without the computer for a bit, and wasn't able to update. Today I am pleased to announce that the Legend of Xanadu help page has been updated with instructions for completing the remaining areas of the game! The only exception is the final dungeon tower, which I will provide maps for on a future update. The tower can be completed without a walkthrough, but the maps will be a big help. There are still some punctuation errors that will be corrected soon, in the meantime you can find a link to the help page in the links section.

The amazing Cocoebiz has helped me to obtain some incredible items! I can't wait for them to arrive and report on them!

See you next time.

Nights Perfect Album Sold Out Everywhere!l

2008-05-14T14:38:00.002-04:00

Sheesh! I held off on buying a Nights Perfect Album and now I can't find one anywhere!
I've learned my lesson now. Another fast seller was the Phantasy First series soundtrack set. Another one I didn't get... UGGGH!! Hopefully they will be restocked at the game music sites soon. If not, it may be Yahoo Japan time for me.

I updated the art gallery with a brand new drawing of Megaman with Rush Jet, which I will also post here:

If you've been checking out the official site for Play! A Video Game Symphony, they announced some exciting news. A CD and DVD will be made of the recent concert performance in Prague! I can't wait. I will still attend the live shows, but I have been dying for Play! to release a concert recording. It's going to be great! Plus, tickets are on sale now for another Play! concert on July 18th, in Baltimore, MD!
Please check the link to Play! in the links section if you would like to read more aobut it.

See you next time!

Akira Yamaoka returns to Silent Hill

2008-04-28T12:24:00.001-04:00

Silent Hill: Homecoming, the first Silent Hill for Next Generation consoles will be released for the XBox 360 and PS3 later this year, and will once again feature music by Mr. Akira Yamaoka. It's nice to see him still involved in the series after all this time, I hope he continues for many years to come!

Source: Music 4 Games

THANK YOU FOR 8,000 HITS!!

2008-04-27T05:12:00.000-04:00

First, thanks to all who've visited this page,making it to 8,000 hits since I put the counter up. Sorry I didn't update for a while...
I wasn't feeling well over the last week, some terrible stomach virus had really gotten me. Aside from work, I didn't do much of anything. No games, no drawing, nothing but get better and listen to game music. The good thing is, I got over it and will get back to regular posting here. With the upcoming release of the Iron Man movie, I did this drawing to thank you all for checking out this page and just for fun, to see what Megaman might look like if he got a design tweak from Mr. Tony Stark. Hope you enjoy!

NEW OVER HORIZON MEDLEY AT OPUS - XERO

2008-04-03T13:34:00.000-04:00

If you've ever had the pleasure of hearing the soundtrack to the classic NES/Famicom shooter Over Horizon, you know how awesome it is.
Youtube user Nintega has a nice gameplay video of Over Horizon:

At the Opus-Xero site, moAbi has created an awesome 12 minute rock medley arranging tunes from Over Horizon! You can find it in the music section at Opus-Xero.com. It's in the middle column at the bottom.
There is a link below, and also a permanent link to Opus-Xero in the links section.
Enjoy!

Opus-Xero.com

The Game Music Concert Magic Spreads...

2008-03-31T16:46:00.000-04:00

Up at Music 4 Games right now is a great writeup on "The Music of Video Games", performed by the Austin Wind Symphony. Even lesser known orchestras are getting into performing game music! I highly recommend checking out the article:

Music For Games

More Soon

Black Mages III Review

2008-03-26T20:47:00.003-04:00

I got the CD yesterday, and have listened to the whole thing at least four times. I think it's pretty awseome! I like this one slightly better than Black Mages 2.
I give it an 8.5 out of 10, but there are some things I would like to see done differently. On some songs I can't comment much, I just love them. I don't write a lot of reviews, but being such a big fan of the Black Mages' first two albums, I really wanted to do a review for this one.

1. Bombing Mission (FF VII)

This is a little toned down from what I was expecting from the opening track, but it still has a nice covert feel to it. I have listened to this track a lot, and I would like to hear it faster with more guitar, though I don't have a problem with the synth. Compared to the other tracks on the album, I think this one could be more unleashed.

2. Neo EXDEATH (FF V)

One of my favorites on the album, I think there is a great balance of guitar and keyboard.

3. The Extreme (FF VIII)

This is a great version, it gets really fast and that's what I was hoping for. The drums and a few other additions make this sound a lot more battle oriented than the original in my opinion, and I love the way it ends!

4. Assault of the Silver Dragons (FF IX)

Being a big FF IX fan, I hoped this would be good, and I'm not disappointed at all, this might be my favorite track on the CD! It's really inspiring. This morning I was running home from work listening to it, even though I had my bicycle.

5. KURAYAMINOKUMO (FF III)

If you bought the FF III DS soundtrack , then you have already heard this, as it was a bonus track on that CD.
I'm glad they included it here, since others might not have gotten to hear it. This is another one of my favorites on the album.

6. Distant Worlds (FF XI)

A great rendition! It's calm and atmospheric. I need fast music most of the time, so I haven't listened to this song as often as the others, but it's still pretty cool.

7. Premonition (FF VIII)

This is awesome! I get the same uneasy feeling as when I hear the original.

8. Grand Cross (FF IX)

Sounds very similar to the game version, especially at the beginning, but the added arrangement really livens it up for me.

9. Darkness and Starlight (FF VI)

The FF VI Opera Scene!
This is the one I would really love to see done differently. I can't say it's a bad musical performance, but it just feels interrupted and out of place compared to the rest of the CD, and the narration is not necessary. The FF VI music arranged this way is still fun to listen to, but I don't feel like listening to this as often as the other songs.

The opera singers here are pretty good, but for the female part I think Sarah Brightman could do an awesome job with this song.

If you are familiar with the FF III arranged CD that has narration, (Legend of Eternal Wind) this would be cool for a FF VI CD like that.

10. LIFE ~ in memory of Keiten ~

Nice piano piece to close out the CD.

I think they did an excellent job overall, I am really enjoying it! I hope I can get this CD autographed one day.

New soundtrack arrivals!!

2008-03-26T20:42:00.001-04:00

Just got these yesterday, and I can't wait to write about them!
Black Mages III, Nights: Journey of Dreams, Final Fantasy IV DS Soundtrack, and Final Fantasy Tactics A2.

My Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Experience...

2008-03-03T08:53:00.005-05:00

What a wonderful night Saturday, March 1st was! At the fantastic Rosemont Theatre in Chicago, the magic happened again. Not only did Play! A Video Game Symphony kick off there in 2006, but Final Fantasy concerts have been held there before, during the Dear Friends tour. It's safe to say that the Chicagoland Pops Orchestra has some great experience performing game music.

It was great to return there again for another special night, the Final Fantasy Distant Worlds North American Premiere. As many of you know, this new tour, celebrating the twenty year history of this beloved RPG franchise, got it's start on December 4th, 2007 in Stockholm, Sweden. Stockholm has become quite a hot spot for great game music concerts in it's own right now, too. The Distant Worlds tour will continue on to Seoul, South Korea in April 2008, and plans for Australia and New Zealand in 2009 have been announced. So how was the concert? AWESOME!

There was snow a couple days before March 1st in Chicago, and it was cold! Most of the snow lingered on. I thought it was a great atmosphere for the show.

THE CONCERT

Arnie Roth conducted again, and I was glad to see him do it. Not many conductors are as familiar with game music, or Final Fantasy music in that matter, as he has become.
After a brief introduction from Arnie Roth, the fans cheered as Mr. Nobuo Uematsu entered the audience, and sat with two of his assistants from Square Enix. Mr. Roth made some great announcements during the concert: The third Black Mages Album has been completed, and the Famous Opera Scene from Final Fantasy VI would be a part of it! I can't wait to hear that CD! Mr. Roth stated that the Distant Worlds Tour would be featuring FF music not not often played at other FF concerts. He also indicated that much more footage from the games would now be a part of the tour, and he was right. It was great!

NOTE: Some of the songs may be out of order.

1. Liberi Fatali (Final Fantasy VIII)
This is a real favorite, it was a great performance of the opening theme from FF VIII. I was once listening to this while riding my bicycle, and I crashed from riding too fast! It's a real intense piece.

2. To Zanarkand (Final Fantasy X)
Great! This is the opening theme for FF X. I still don't know why this game gets a lot of criticism. I loved it!

3. Final Fantasy Main Theme (FF Series)
For the most part, it's in every FF game, it's timeless, a trademark.

4. Don't Be Afraid (Final Fantasy VIII)
The FF VIII Battle Theme! The game footage showed an actual battle encounter to go along right with the music.

5. Theme of Aeris (Final Fantasy VII)
Sure, I've heard it live many times, it's still great to hear, though. Everyone loves it.

6. Final Fantasy I-III Medley
If you've heard some of the various FF concert albums out there, this is pretty much the same medley. One thing I like about it is that there is a lot of emphasis on FF II.

7. Vamo' alla Flamenco (Final Fantasy IX)
A guest guitarist was brought out for this piece, and he did an amazing job. I think it was largely extended from previous live versions, and was by far the best version of it I've ever heard.

8. Dear Friends (Final Fantasy V)
The guest guitarist did another awesome job with this piece, the ending for FF V.

9. Love Grows (Final Fantasy VIII)
Basically, it's the instrumental version of "Eyes on Me", the vocal theme from FF VIII. I kept going through the lyrics in my head as I listened.

Intermission
Now more of the new and rare pieces would be performed!

10. Opening ~ Bombing Mission (Final Fantasy VII
The only other time I've heard this live was at the More Friends FF Concert back in '05, and they did an excellent job with it. I love this piece, it went right along with the FF VII opening footage they showed.

11. Fisherman's Horizon (Final Fantasy VIII)
First time hearing this live! Really cool! The choir was great.

12. Swing de Chocobo (Final Fantasy X)
Arranged by Arnie Roth personally from the FF X version of the Chocobo Theme.
It's become so recognizable over the years.

13. Theme of Love (Final Fantasy IV)
This was a classic from FF IV, and it was the first time I've seen the cinemas from FF IV DS. AMAZING!!

14. Memoro de las Stono ~ Distant Worlds (Final Fantasy XI
Another piece that was a first for me to hear live. This wasn't just part of the opening from FF XI, this was, I think one of the best performances of the show. The choir was incredible, and lyrics were added, performed by a great female vocalist with a gorgeous voice (I can't remember her name for the life of me).

15. Opera "Maria and Draco" (Final Fantasy VI)
This was the main reason I attended the More Friends Concert, and I was getting to hear it again! FF VI is my favorite FF game! I almost think this was better than the More Friends performance. The opera singers definitely had the emotions and expressions right for the piece. So rare to see this performed live, and such a treat!

16. Terra's Theme (Final Fantasy VI)
The "final" piece for the evening, this was fantastic. It was made special by the way they tied the game footage into it. The 16 bit footage from the FF VI opening was shown, and where the game normally listed creator credits, they changed it to show the credits for the concert. It must have been cool for Arnie Roth to see his name up on the screen while Terra walked in the snow with her companions wearing the Magitek Armor.

After a standing ovation, of course there had to be an encore:

17. One Winged Angel (Final Fantasy VII)
It's to be expected at an FF show. Everyone always goes nuts for it.

More standing ovations followed, and Mr. Uematsu appeared on stage with Mr. Arnie Roth and bowed to everyone. An awesome evening, the concert was almost 2 1/2 hours, and I was so looking forward to meeting Mr. Uematsu again!

The meet and greet followed for those who were lucky, and paid $150.00 for a ticket. The line was long, but I must thank Mr. Uematsu, Mr. Roth and AWR productions for one of the best meeting sessions I've ever been to. I didn't see anyone being rushed, and everyone got a great moment to thank Nobuo Uematsu for his music (you can see my photos to the right in my photo gallery). Thank you all for your patience meeting all the fans. I must also thank the staff of the Rosemont Theatre for their help taking photos and for their comments on my artwork. Both times I've been there, you guys have seriously been the best staff at any concert I've ever attended.

The Rosemont Theatre the night of the show

Fans gathered outside ready for showtime. Mr. Uematsu made an early appearance and waved to the fans from inside.

Some of the merchandise on sale. Also available were autographed posters.

The line for the meet and greet was long!

The orchestra preparing to get started.

Autographs
I was lucky once again to get a number of items signed, including my drawing of Mr. Uematsu as a Black Mage! (see photo at right)

Blue Dragon OST and FF VII Piano Collections (Digicube)

Final Fantasy I & II PS1 OST and FF IV Celtic Moon

FF III NES/FC OST

FF Songbook Mahoroba and FF Symphonic Suite

Phantasmagoria

FF Tactics Advance OST: I got it signed once by Mr. Hitoshi Sakimoto at Play! in Detroit, and I brought it to this concert for Mr. Uematsu to autograph. I was extremely luck to get both discs and the liner notes signed by the two of them. Mr. Uematsu noticed Sakimoto's signature and he said "Oh, Sakimoto-San, he's my friend".
He also made another comment about working on the FF Tactics OST with Sakimoto that was soooo funny, I'll share it at another time.

Hope you enjoyed this writeup, thanks for reading!

Distant Worlds ROCKED Chicago!

2008-03-02T01:37:00.000-05:00

I just got in from the Distant Worlds Final Fantasy Concert, and it was a complete success!! Lots of new gameplay videos and FMVs were added, and even more tracks that hardly ever get played at FF concerts were performed! Everyone had a blast! I have so much cool stuff to share, I can't wait until I get home tomorrow!

ATTENDING FINAL FANTASY DISTANT WORLDS

2008-02-29T02:05:00.000-05:00

Hello all! I'm really excited to be attending the Final Fantasy Distant Worlds concert this weekend. I made a little drawing to celebrate the event. I have printed it, and here's to hoping Mr. Uematsu will autograph it for me! I look forward to reporting on the event when I return. See you then!

Thanks for 7,000 hits!!

2008-02-27T17:01:00.000-05:00

Once again, a big thank you to those who visit my page. Here's a couple things I've done in the last few days:

Legend of Xanadu II Boss fight 3! I am making all new, high quality recordings of this great game by Falcom. Enjoy this boss fight video!

A new Megaman drawing, done in more of an anime style:

COUNTDOWN TO FINAL FANTASY DISTANT WORLDS!!

2008-02-21T12:10:00.001-05:00

It's about one week away until March 1st, the hype is building! I haven't been to a game concert since Play! in Stockholm last June, and I'm ready! With this post I wanted to give some tips for those attending the show or the meet and greet session with Nobuo Uematsu and Arnie Roth.

1. Arrive at the venue early with your camera.

Trust me, I have seen Nobuo Uematsu and Yasunori Mitsuda walking outside a theater before the show started. That will be a good opportunity to meet Mr. Uematsu before the meet and greet. Many people may not even know what Mr. Uematsu looks like.

My photo with Akira Yamaoka below? That was taken before the concert, when he was walking around outside taking pictures of the concert hall. I have a feeling that nobody knew who he was. I thought I may be intruding, but he was extremely nice.
All of the composers I have met have been wonderful. Remember to be respectful if you see a good opportunity.

2. Bring stuff to get autographed.

I have heard many fans who said they should have brought something to get autographed. Remember, it's not every day an opportunity like this comes along. Don't forget anything.
You may hear something like "only one picture or one item to get signed". You'll have to be quick and resourceful, if you want to get a bunch of games or CDs signed, open all of them beforehand. Either the liner notes or the discs themselves. It can be done.
The line will be long for the meet & greet, and no one wants to be there all night.

3. Don't forget your camera!

If you would like a picture with Mr. Uematsu, don't forget your camera, especially if you had to lock it up before the concert.In my experience, cameras are allowed in the meeting sessions, but may not be allowed during the concert. Although with so many camera phones out there, it's a little hard to control that now.
If you don't have a camera, maybe someone in the line will be nice and take a picture for you, and e-mail it afterwards!

One last thing. I am unsure if they will make you turn in your bag, if you bring stuff to get autographed. My tip is to bring those items in something smaller, it will be less likely for someone on staff at the theater to see it and ask you to turn it in. Otherwise, you'll have to run and get it after the show, and there could be a line, and it will delay you getting a good spot in line for the meeting session.

Hope this can be of some help, and I look forward to seeing you all there!

My First Game Music Video

2008-02-20T08:23:00.002-05:00

I made my first Game Music Video (GMV) with Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children to go along with the killer Hellion Sounds version of Jenova. Hope you like it!

Project Majestic Mix KFSS Studios Farewell

2008-02-20T06:08:00.001-05:00

I received the unfortunate e-mail, as I'm sure many of you have, that Project Majestic Mix will cease operating soon. The website will be up for seven more days, and then taken down indefinitely on February 26th. I'd like to thank you all at Majestic Mix/KFSS for all the joy you brought this fan of game music through your wonderful works, and wish you all the best of luck in the future. I hope your plans to return one day will bring you more success than you can handle. Thanks again for the great music and memories!

Nights Perfect Album Announced

2008-01-23T20:27:00.000-05:00

This is great! Finally the original Nights soundtrack is getting the release it always deserved, this time in the form of three discs! Cocoebiz is taking pre-orders on the set, which contains two discs for the Original Nights soundtrack, with the third disc devoted to covering music from the limited Christmas Nights game. With the original Nights soundtrack being only one disc when it was released long ago, I think this set will be the Nights soundtrack the fans (myself included) have been wanting. Also, the new Nights for the Wii will has a soundtrack too! Check out some links below:

Cocoebiz

CD Japan Below

Nights: Journey of Dreams Wii soundtrack information

See you next time!

Game Music Collection update

2008-01-17T05:56:00.000-05:00

The following soundtracks were added to the list today on this update(1-16-08):

Soldner X: Himmelssturmer OST
Summon Night 1-4
Megaman 7
Megaman 8
Megaman ZX Advent Tunes
Final Fantasy Heavy Metal Guarvail
Growlanser VI
Wild Arms 5 OST part 1
Hudson Premium Audio CD
Extra: Game Music Event CD
Super Hang On 20th Anniversary
Wangan Midnight 3
Yuzo Koshiro Best Collection 2
Etrian Odyssey Super Arrange Verison
Etrian Odyssey OST
Trusty Bell Chopin's Dream
Megaman X Rock (Zero and X verisons : Every Time I bang)
Rock Love Megaman Techno Arrange
R.O.C.K.M.A.N. (Megaman Jazzy Arrange)
Dracula X Chronicles PSP soundtrack

If you would like to visit my collection page, there is a link in the links section. Thanks as always for reading!

DRAWING SAILOR MOON PART 4!

2008-01-16T18:55:00.000-05:00

Finally I was able to get this thing up! Hope you enjoy it! The final ink and color took a little longer than expected to finish.

ANOTHER VISIT WITH FAMILY GUY YS...

2008-01-15T16:20:00.000-05:00

If you've ever visited my art gallery page, you might have seen Peter Griffin as Adol Christin from the Ys series:

Today I'd like to add a couple more drawings to the Family Guy Ys collection:
"Adol Griffin" and "Brian Dogi" (Click to enlarge):

"Stewie Fact":

Thanks to all who have visited this page! 6,000 visitors is a lot for a game music blog maintained by one person!

Some Random Sketches...

2008-01-09T21:41:00.000-05:00

Some random sketches I did today to get warmed up into drawing after the busy Holidays, when I didn't have time to draw. Because of that, December was bittersweet. The good thing is, my pencil burns with drawing energy once again!
It's not often that I would show quick sketches such as these, but maybe someone will enjoy seeing them?

Wolverine

Megaman, here I was going for his slightly older/taller look, like in Megaman 8. I don't draw him in this style very often, it's just not how I like to do it.

This is how I love to draw Megaman! Short but just as strong!

MEGAMAN X ROCKS OUT ON THESE DISCS...

2008-01-05T18:16:00.000-05:00

I just got my hands on two new Megaman X arrange CDs and they are fantastic! This is pretty hardcore game music metal here, and the fast heavy style on these discs suits the war torn world of X and Zero perfectly. Created by the band "Kissing the Mirror" out of Japan, both discs consist of favorite tracks from the Megaman X series. On each CD you will find seven tracks, which makes them a little short, but the content is amazing. Both albums are titled "Every Time I Bang", so in a sense they are one album only just split into two: One for X and one for Zero. The release date for both discs is listed as 10-8-07, so it's cool to be able get in on a new work such as this early on.

As a fan of Megaman X almost just as much as the original Megaman series, these albums are a breath of fresh air. Quite frankly, there hasn't been a lot of BGM arrangement work done for the Megaman X series. With Capcom recently releasing a rock and techno CD for Megaman though, that could certainly change. In the meantime, I don't mind relying on the various doujin circles and musicians one bit to get my game arrange fix. That goes especially for these discs, they really are of excellent quality. The styles range from short bits of orchestration to great bursts of speedy guitar and keyboard filled excitement! One other important thing to note is that although some themes on these discs are expanded upon, the band really stays true to the original music. It's inspiring to me to see Megaman X music finally getting the heavy metal treatment it deserves. Well done guys!

It is a shame that doujin CDs like this are so hard to come by. From my experience, some of them are impossible to get unless you know someone in Japan or if you can find them at an auction site somewhere. If you are unaware of ebay seller champ_des_pins, I recommend cheking out his auctions. At any given time he always has an excellent selection of doujin CDs, and he is reliable, and in Japan. That's where I got these discs, and it's very possible he could have some more available soon. Here is a link to his ebay store page:

champ_des_pins ebay store

I have scanned the fronts and backs of both albums as well:
EVERY TIME I BANG-X (FRONT)

EVERY TIME I BANG-X (BACK)

EVERY TIME I BANG-ZERO (FRONT)

EVERY TIME I BANG-ZERO (BACK)
Here is the Kissing the Mirror site, and there you can listen to samples from these great works!

Kissing the Mirror

Just scroll down and click on "Every Time I Bang".

See you next time!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

2008-01-02T18:37:00.000-05:00

It was a busy end of the year for me, but now I'm ready for the new year with lots of cool things in the works. I hope you all have a great new year! I'm working on the final part of my Sailor Moon drawing video, and in the coming days I'll have some CD reviews up and more drawing videos are planned as well. The countdown to the Distant Worlds Final Fantasy concert is ON! I can't wait for it! As for whatever else I've been up to, check below for a quick look at Cap'n Crunch Adventures.

FIRST LOOK: CAP'N CRUNCH ADVENTURES!

2008-01-02T18:33:00.000-05:00

Here is a little sneak peak at my upcoming Cap'n Crunch comic, which will be a part of this blog in the coming weeks. This image will serve as the "cover" for the debut of the series. More to come very soon!

Final Fantasy Distant Worlds CD Available at Amazon now!

2007-12-07T20:26:00.000-05:00

This is the official CD for the Final Fantasy twentieth anniversary concert tour. At the Distant Worlds site, they have revealed the disc is now on sale at Amazon. Here are some details from the site:

All music composed and produced by Nobuo Uematsu
Arnie Roth, Conductor and Executive Producer

Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and Allmänna Sången
Susan Calloway (Solo singer)
Emma Wetter, Fredrik Strid and Johan Schinkler (Opera vocal soloists)
Per Skareng (Solo guitarist)

1) Opening - Bombing Mission (FINAL FANTASY VII)
2) Liberi Fatali (FINAL FANTASY VIII)
3) Aerith's Theme (FINAL FANTASY VII)
4) Fisherman's Horizon (FINAL FANTASY VIII)
5) Don't be Afraid (FINAL FANTASY VIII)
6) Memoro de la Stono - Distant Worlds (FINAL FANTASY XI)
7) Medley 2002 (FINAL FANTASY I-III)
8) Theme of Love (FINAL FANTASY IV)
9) Vamo' alla Flamenco (FINAL FANTASY IX)
10) Love Grows (FINAL FANTASY VIII)
11) Opera "Maria and Draco" (FINAL FANTASY VI)
12) Swing de Chocobo (FINAL FANTASY series)
13) One-Winged Angel (FINAL FANTASY VII)

Running time: 75 min.

The price is $19.98, however the CD is also going to be available at the concert tour locations. I'm someone who can't wait for things like this, so I may end up getting it now. There is a quote from Mr. Uematsu at the Distant Worlds site:

"The title selection, the recording quality and the performance quality of the new Distant Worlds CD is excellent. These factors make me call it a Best of Final Fantasy album in every regard,"

Here's the Distant Worlds Site:

Distant Worlds

Below is the link to Amazon:

Buy the CD Here!

More Megaman music news!

2007-11-19T19:48:00.000-05:00

Capcom is also releasing two new Megaman arranged CDs, one techno and one rock. I bet these will be really cool. Will they be able to top the Megalomania CD? Anyway, most new Capcom products are only available at cocoeBiz, and you can check out more details of these arranged albums on their upcoming releases page:

Coming Soon

The Rock Arrange is due out on 12/5, and the Techno Arrange is due out on 12/19. You can pre-order them now. Thank you CocoeBiz for making these available!

Megaman 7 & 8 soundtracks available to order now!

2007-11-19T19:19:00.000-05:00

I have been wanting this for years! Probably old news already to Megaman fans, but news this good has to be spread around. Finally, Megaman 7 & 8 are getting new and proper soundtrack releases! Both are scheduled to be released on 11-21. I think they will sell really fast! CocoeBiz is also holding a contest to win a Capcom Photo Album for those who purchase some of their Megaman (Rockman) CDs. Here are more details:

Mega man 7

and

Megaman 8

Also check out:

CocoeBiz Contest Page

CocoeBiz Theme Contest

2007-11-19T19:12:00.000-05:00

CocoeBiz has announced a contest to compose a theme for them! Only the announcement has been made thus far. They state that more details will come out in early 2008.

Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Meet & Greet SOLD OUT!

2007-11-05T17:23:00.000-05:00

The official Final Fantasy Distant Worlds site is reporting that the tickets to meet with Mr. Nobuo Uematsu and conductor Arnie Roth at the show are sold out! This includes the Stockholm and Chicago performances. That didn't take long, did it?

Drawing Sailor Moon (3 of 4)

2007-11-05T17:19:00.000-05:00

Part three of Drawing Sailor Moon in real time. As previously mentioned, this was originally a thirty-seven minute drawing session I recorded. In the last one I will show the inked and colored versions of this drawing:

Drawing Sailor Moon (2 of 4)

2007-11-01T19:12:00.000-04:00

Here's Part 2, hope you enjoy!

NEW! Drawing Sailor Moon (1 of 4)

2007-11-01T18:17:00.000-04:00

I had been wanting to do a Sailor Moon drawing video for a while now, so here is the first part! The total time for the drawing was about thirty-seven minutes, so I split it up into four parts. I will add the others as soon as they are uploaded.

New track at the Skies Symphony

2007-10-21T15:41:00.000-04:00

Now that Kiesca (The Skies Symphony) has completed his work on the "First Tragedy" downloadable symphonic Metal album, he has started work on his next project already it seems! Entitled Will of the World, it serves as the instrumental introduction to "Hopeless Reborn". It's fantastic. This one is mostly piano driven, and it's pretty chaotic! It's been a lot of fun following what this guy does. Even though some of his music is really dark, I really enjoy it, and if you haven't yet checked out his game music arranges, I recommend it, they're awesome! Many of the tracks remind me of some epic battle taking place in a RPG.

You can download and listen to First Tragedy or get in on the beginning of Hopeless Reborn at the link below. I think you will appreciate the amazing musicianship if nothing else, and hey, the tracks are completely free! A gift from the artist!

The Skies Symphony

I'll update again when the Skies Symphony adds another work.

Dracula X Chronicles Soundtrack

2007-10-21T15:15:00.000-04:00

This is going to be really limited I think. On 11/08/07, the soundtrack to the long-awaited Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles PSP version is scheduled to be released. Cocoebiz is listing it as two discs. I'm guessing that one disc will be the original soundtrack, and the other will be the new arranges for the PSP verison.

Pre-order at cocoebiz now!

On another note, Look for the Cap'n Crunch web comic to hit during the week. I think it's better to launch it when I have more pages completed. Yesterday was gonna be the day, but I spent Friday resting from the work week, and didn't accomplish everything I had set to go Saturday.
Don't forget, the Odin Sphere OST will be released on 10/24!

Since there is no Cap'n Crunch yet, I have a need to get more art up here, so this is a new Batgirl drawing I recently completed.

NEW FINAL FANTASY CONCERT TOUR ANNOUNCED!!

2007-10-17T08:24:00.000-04:00

Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy kicks off December 4th, 2007 in Stockholm Sweden! Marking the 20th anniversary of Final Fantasy with an all new tour, Mr. Nobuo Uematsu and veteran Final Fantasy Concert conductor Arnie Roth will be there! Even better news, a second show has already been announced for March 1, 2008 in Chicago! It will be at the Rosemont Theater, where Play! A Video Game Symphony launched last year.
This is excellent news! According to the official site (see link below), Mr. Uematsu will be in attendance at both shows. A ticket price of $150.00 has been established to attend a meeting session with Mr. Uematsu at the event. Tickets for the Chicago performance are on sale now. I am thinking they will go quickly. The event promises to be a blast.
A special Final Fantasy CD is also being released to celebrate the series' twenty year history, as well as this new tour. The CD will be available at the concert locations.
Check out the site below!

Distant Worlds Official Site

SEE YOU THERE!!

Play! is heading to Oslo in October!

2007-09-06T09:19:00.000-04:00

I am thrilled to see the Play! A Video Game Symphony continue it's world tour. The tour stops in Oslo, Norway on October 26th, at 8:30 PM. You can visit the following sites for more information:

Play-Symphony.no

Play! A Video Game Symphony

As always, I'll report any new Play! news ASAP.

Good News for Odin Sphere fans

2007-09-02T02:51:00.000-04:00

The release date for the Odin Sphere soundtrack is Oct. 24th in Japan! I checked a number of sites, and Play-Asia is the only one I have seen so far that has pre-orders available. I am expecting that Cocoebiz will have them available to order soon as well. You can check out the Play-Asia page here:

Pre-order Odin Sphere OST at Play-Asia

Until Next Time!

Drawing Aeris!!

2007-08-23T17:18:00.000-04:00

I just got a bunch of cool Final Fantasy arranged tunes, and got really inspired to do a FF sketch video. Here is me drawing Aeris, showcasing some excellent game music in the process.

Game Music Freak's Blog!!!

Running XP Ys The Oath in Felghana and Ys VI on Windows 7

Ys vs. Sora no Kiseki Collective Music Files and Falcom 30th - Kiseki & Ys Best Secret

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ANCIENT GRADE - DOUJIN ALBUM REVIEW

All About FF Distant Worlds Atlanta!!

At Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Atlanta Tonight and Tomorrow!

SPECIAL AUCTION TO HELP JAPAN!

Attending Distant Worlds Atlanta in May!

The Best of JDK Band #3

New Best of JDK Band Playlist on Youtube!

ZREO Twilight Symphony Choir Contribution

Sanctuary Crew is taking donations up to 4/16 for Japan relief!

The Sanctuary Crew Presents FIGHT FOR JAPAN!

Collection Updates!

Recommended Reading #1 - Leviathan and Behemoth

Sorcerian Perfect Collections at Egg Music

contest over! There is a winner!

Ys Seven Limited Editon Giveaway Contest on Friday!!

DARKNESS RISING CONTINUES!

FALCOM UNVEILS LEGEND OF HEROES VII TRAILER

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Final Fantasy III - Eternal Wind (Arranged by Zuigu)

Ys - Fountain of Love (Time For Us) Arranged by NYA

Webcomic Official SIte Open!!!

THERE WILL BE AN YS SEVEN GIVEAWAY!!

Two New Music Videos...

Collection Page Updated!

My Favorite Game Music #51 - The Warship Hold (Bonk's Revenge)

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IN THE BEGINNING ON YOUTUBE!!

DARKNESS RISING CHAPTER 1

A Cover Has Appeared!!

Ys Online Solo Gameplay Movie 2

Ys Online

Attending Distant Worlds Concert on 12/12!

Random Giveaway Contest #1 - Ys I & II Chronicles!!

On Deviant Art!

Capcom partners with Sumthing Distribution!

Ys Seven Official Site Updated!

Ys Seven Official site begins!

For those attending the Distant Worlds Meet and Greet with Nobuo Uematsu...

Update 4-7-09

Play! CD/DVD releasing on January 9th!

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Music 4 Games Interview with Hitoshi Sakimoto

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When you haven't heard it in a while...

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Thanks for 11,000 HIts!!

Profile: Mercer Friendly

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Drawing Heavy Metal Megaman

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RIZ-ZOAWD Looks Promising...

Play! concert scheduled for August 23rd in San Francisco canceled

More Legend of Xanadu Gameplay

Cocoebiz youtube channel!

NiGHTS Perfect Album back in stock at Cocoebiz!

Current Events

Legend of Xanadu video playthrough begins...

NiGHTS PERFECT ALBUM PROFILED

The Legend of Xanadu Help Page updated!

Nights Perfect Album Sold Out Everywhere!l

Akira Yamaoka returns to Silent Hill

THANK YOU FOR 8,000 HITS!!

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New soundtrack arrivals!!

My Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Experience...

Distant Worlds ROCKED Chicago!

ATTENDING FINAL FANTASY DISTANT WORLDS

Thanks for 7,000 hits!!

COUNTDOWN TO FINAL FANTASY DISTANT WORLDS!!

My First Game Music Video

Project Majestic Mix KFSS Studios Farewell

Nights Perfect Album Announced